CRT monitors are still in use today because they offer a better viewing experience than modern displays. Some people in the tech community are talking about CRT monitors because they are used in older video games and applications. Modern displays are more advanced, but some people prefer the CRT monitor experience. ..

The answer to those questions might be more complicated than you think. CRTs are becoming more popular in 2019, but there are a few reasons why they might be a good choice for your home theater system.

They Look Good at Any Resolution

Native resolution refers to the number of pixels on a screen that are actually physically present. A full HD panel has 1920 by 1080 pixels, which is the native resolution. If you send an image with a lower resolution to such a panel, it has to be scaled so that multiple physical pixels act as a single virtual pixel. ..

Scaled images on LCD screens used to look terrible, but modern scaling solutions look great. So it’s not much of an issue anymore. ..

Despite the fact that CRT displays use outdated technology, they still look good at any resolution. This is because there are no physical pixels on a CRT display, which means that the image is drawn on the inside of the screen using electron beams. This eliminates the need for scaling, which results in images that look smooth and nice at low resolutions. ..

With the advent of LCD technology, you pretty much had to output at the native resolution, which meant cutting corners in other areas such as texture and lighting detail. ..

A CRT is a better option for high-end 3D applications because it has a lower resolution but still provides good visual effects. Compared to LCDs, which have a higher resolution but can cause eyestrain, CRTs are a good compromise. ..

Blur-Free Motion

A display method known as “sample and hold” is used on LCD flat panels, where the current frame stays on screen in a perfectly static way until the next one is ready. CRTs (and plasma screens) use a pulsed method, where the frame is drawn on screen but immediately begins to fade to black as the phosphors lose energy.

While the sample and hold method might sound superior, the perceptual effect is a blurry image in motion thanks to the way we perceive apparent motion. Sample and hold is one of several causes of unwanted motion blur on LCDs, but it’s a big one. ..

A recent study found that CRTs can show sharp motion with no brightness sacrifice and can therefore look much better when playing back video.

Incredible Black Levels

Black is not truly visible on LCD screens because the backlight is necessary to create an image. Without the backlight, there would be no image to see. ..

LCD screens can’t produce true blacks because when a pixel turns off to display black, it doesn’t block all the light coming from behind it. So the best LCD screens can do is create a sort of “grey tone.” Modern LCD screens are much better at compensating for this by having multiple LEDs evenly lighting the panel and local backlight dimming, but true blacks are still not possible. ..

The best black levels are still to be found in CRTs, as they draw the picture on the back of the screen perfectly. This is thanks to modern technologies like OLED and plasma, but they are still too expensive for mainstream consumers.

Some Retro Content Was Designed For CRTs

If you enjoy retro content, such as older video games from before HD consoles and standard 4:3 aspect ratio video content, it may be best to watch them on a CRT. ..

Flat panel TVs are great for modern living, but the content that is shown on them is not always what the creators intended. So, what you see on a flat panel TV will never be exactly like the creators’ intentions. ..

Some video games actually took advantage of CRT quirks to generate effects such as flowing water or transparency. These effects don’t work or look odd on modern flat panels. This is why CRTs are popular and sought after among retro gamers. ..

Why You DON’T Want a CRT In 2019

While CRTs are objectively superior to flat panel displays, there are also a long list of cons. After all, there’s a reason the world moved to newer display technology. ..

It is important to remember that flat panel displays at the time of the shift were far worse than those of today, yet people felt the pros of LCDs were on balance a better deal.

CRT screens are large, heavy, power-hungry and less suitable for productivity and watching widescreen films. While their resolution limits aren’t a huge issue for video games, any sort of serious work turns into struggle with low resolution text and a lack of desktop real estate.

Despite their large size, actual screen dimensions are tiny relative to flat panels. There certainly isn’t a CRT equivalent of the 55" and larger monsters we have today. Despite the substantial image quality and motion advantages CRTs have over even the best modern flat panels, only a small niche group of people are willing to put up with the long list of drawbacks that come with CRT use. ..

CRTs are great for gaming, but they’re not for everyone. Make sure you know what you’re getting into before you buy one. ..